By Tom Perry and Stephanie Nebehay BEIRUT/GENEVA (Reuters) – Thousands of civilians have fled advances by Syrian government forces in eastern Ghouta over the last two days, a war monitor and a resident said, as Damascus makes rapid gains in a fierce assault against the last major rebel enclave near the capital. Government forces need to advance just a few more kilometers (miles) further to split the enclave in two, said a commander in the military alliance that backs President Bashar al-Assad. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said government forces had seized around a quarter of eastern Ghouta in a ground assault that got underway on Feb. 27, building on a ferocious air and artillery bombardment that has killed hundreds.

BERLIN (AP) — The young rebel behind a political campaign that could cause turmoil across Europe looks like a typical German university student — he's usually in sneakers, jeans and a hoodie, has soft features, short blond hair and an overall polite demeanor.

Israel on Tuesday suspended tax measures and other actions that led to the rare closure of the church built at what is seen as the holiest site in Christianity, shut down all week in protest. Christian leaders who have kept Jerusalem's Church of the Holy Sepulchre closed since Sunday were yet to respond to the decision and it was not clear whether it would reopen imminently. The closure has left thousands of pilgrims and tourists seeking to visit the site locked outside, with some kneeling in front of its large wooden doors to pray in Jerusalem's Old City. Dozens of protesters rallied outside the church on Tuesday afternoon in support of Christian leaders. A statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said a "professional team" would be appointed to come up with a solution to tax measures imposed by Israeli authorities in Jerusalem firmly opposed by Christian leaders. More than 500,000 Christian tourists visit Israel every year Credit: THOMAS COEX/AFP/Getty Images "As a result, the Jerusalem municipality is suspending the collection actions it has taken in recent weeks," the statement said. Israeli Regional Cooperation Minister Tzachi Hanegbi will also look into the issue of land sales in Jerusalem by Christian bodies. During that time, a proposed law that Christian leaders say would allow Israel to expropriate church land now owned by private investors is to be shelved, the statement said. The church is built where Christians believe Jesus was crucified, buried and resurrected. Custody of it is shared by the Greek Orthodox, Armenian and Roman Catholic denominations. Christian leaders are in part angry over attempts by Israeli authorities in Jerusalem to enforce tax collection on church property they consider commercial, saying exemptions only apply to places of worship or religious teaching.

BEIRUT (AP) — Turkey warned the Syrian government Monday against entering the Kurdish-controlled enclave in northern Syria where a major Turkish military offensive is underway, saying it would hit back at the troops if their goal is to protect the Kurdish fighters.

The US-led coalition killed more than 100 Assad regime fighters in eastern Syria on Wednesday, officials said, in the largest deliberate strike carried out by Western forces against pro-Syrian government troops. The coalition said it struck regime fighters with airstrikes and artillery after they launched an "unprovoked attack" against the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the Western-backed rebels fighting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) in Syria. "We estimate more than 100 Syrian pro-regime forces were killed while engaging SDF and coalition forces," a US military official said. The strikes took place in the Euphrates River valley in the province of Deir Ezzor, where Isil still holds scraps of territory but is under intense pressure from both Syrian regime forces and the SDF. The US has struck pro-regime forces in eastern Syria several times but Wednesday's attack caused more casualties than any previous deliberate strike. Syrian army fighters are operating against Isil in Deir Ezzor as are the Syrian Democratic Forces Credit: LOUAI BESHARA/AFP/Getty Images Around 100 Syrian army troops were killed in an accidental strike in Deir Ezzor in September 2016 when US forces mistook them for Isil fighters. The US and the Assad regime have for the most part maintained an uneasy truce in Syria, exchanging hostile words but rarely shooting at each other Wednesday's strike against pro-regime forces illustrates the complex new reality in Syria, where the shared enemy of Isil has largely been defeated and tensions are growing between competing military forces in the country. The US said that around 500 pro-regime troops, backed by tanks and artillery, had launched what appeared to be coordinated attack on an SDF headquarters. “The coalition conducted strikes against attacking forces to repel the act of aggression,” a coalition spokesman said. US jets have uneasily shared Syrian airspace with Russian and regime aircraft Credit: AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon The US did not specifically say if the fighters were from the Syrian army or an allied militia or a foreign fighters group like the Lebanese militants Hizbollah. The Syrian regime said the fighters were from a local militia fighting against Isil and accused the US of "a war crime and a crime against humanity". Damascus regularly protests against the US-led intervention in Syria, calling it a violation of Syria's sovereignty, but has been largely powerless to stop it. The US maintains a "deconfliction channel" with Russia, which is allied with the Syrian regime, and the two militaries use the channel to coordinate their movements to avoid to any accidental conflicts. The US said it had been in contact with the Russians throughout the attack on Wednesday and had been reassured that Russian aircraft would not launch strikes against the coalition in support of Syrian regime troops. Further strikes on regime positions are being considered within the US government, a Syrian opposition diplomatic source told the Telegraph, particularly within the National Security Council led by General HR McMaster, and supported by Nikki Haley, the ambassador to the UN. But there is significant divergence within the administration, according to the source, with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson urging more caution. The French government is said to support such moves, having been frustrated by what it saw as flip-flopping within the Trump administration over their willingness to stand up to Russia in Syria.

WASHINGTON ― The Trump administration is doubling down on a lie the U.S. government has promoted since it first began cooperating with the Syrian Kurds against the Islamic State group in 2014: that the Kurds it is working with in Syria differ from those that are anathema to NATO ally Turkey.

By Maggie Fick and George Obulutsa NAIROBI (Reuters) – Three private Kenyan television channels remained off air despite a court order on Thursday that they be allowed to resume broadcasting, overturning a government-ordered shut down. Authorities turned off the three channels as they began to cover opposition leader Raila Odinga’s symbolic presidential inauguration on Tuesday. NTV Kenya, three of whose journalists said they had spent the night in their newsroom in fear of arrest, said on its Twitter feed that the privately owned broadcasters were expected back on air after the High Court ruling.

Trump administration officials have claimed the Syrian government may be creating new kinds of chemical weapons, despite a 2013 agreement to destroy such a programme. The US and Russia agreed to destroy Syria’s chemical weapons arsenal in 2013, with weapons due to have been removed or destroyed by 2014. Several UN Security Council resolutions and the Chemical Weapons Convention also ban the use of such weapons.